104-year-old Newbury woman appointed MBE in New Year's Honours List for Captain Sir Tom Moore style fundraiser
Ruth Saunders recognised for raising almost £50,000 for charity
A 104-year-old Newbury woman who raised almost £50,000 for charity by walking a marathon has been appointed an MBE in the New Year's Honours List.
Ruth Saunders originally set herself a target of walking 104 laps of the roads around her home – one for every year she has been alive. Each walk covered a fifth of a mile – a total of nearly 21 miles.
However, Mrs Saunders didn't stop there and carried on until she had completed the marathon distance of 26.2 miles.
Mrs Saunders was inspired by 100-year-old Captain Sir Tom Moore, who famously raised £32m for the NHS by walking 100 laps of his garden.
She previously said: "I thought if he can do it then so can I – and I'm four years older."
Just as it did with Captain Tom, her story gripped the hearts of a nation and as a result donations flooded in.
Donations to her fundraising page went up by £3,000 in a week after the Newbury Weekly News first ran her story on the front page.
It was subsequently picked up by a number of national newspapers and Mrs Saunders also made numerous television and radio appearances.
Speaking to the Newbury Weekly News yesterday (Wednesday), Mrs Saunders said: “It was certainly a nice surprise. I’m a bit shocked and it hasn’t really sunk in yet. I sort of put it to the back of my mind because I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone.
“Maybe when I start talking about it a bit more it will become real.
“I never thought when I started it it would come to this. I didn’t think I had done enough to get this sort of recognition.
"I just enjoy walking. It does me good. I do think people sit about too much and they don’t do things. You can't just sit there and vegetate.
"Even when I retired I was always doing something. I never sat still."
Mrs Saunders said her family were "very pleased about it", adding: "I’m sure I will be getting a few phone calls tonight and over the next few days."
The MBE wasn't the only surprise Mrs Saunders received over the festive period – she also got a personal Christmas card from the Prime Minister and his fiancée Carrie Symonds.
She said: “I was sat in my chair and this card arrived through the door. There was no sign it had come from anywhere when I looked at it, so I was quite surprised when I opened it and found out it was from the Prime Minister."
Mrs Saunders' granddaughter, Kate Saunders, said: “I was really surprised when I opened the email up from the Cabinet Office. I was worries it might have been spam.
“I was just so shocked. Everything Gran has done has been quite inspiring.
“The recommendation for the MBE came directly from Boris Johnson himself, so it was all quite overwhelming.
“She has obviously sparked something in people, especially during Covid and lockdown. It shows people if you have right attitude you can do whatever you want. There are no limits.
“She has really captured the hearts of people locally, nationally and even internationally. We've had messages from people all over the world.
“At 104, to have that spirit of can do and will do is amazing.
“I remember Gran saying ‘wouldn’t it be nice to get to £500’. Now she’s almost raised £50,000. It’s just incredible. People have been so generous.”
Mrs Saunders' fundraising page is still open. If you would like to make a donation, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ruthsaunders104
Hungerford resident Simon Mark Halden, the founder and campaign leader for the Sarah Greene Breakthrough Tribute Fund, has also been appointed an MBE for services to cancer fundraising.
Baughurst resident Clare Joanna Threlfall Normand, the founder of the Alec Normand Fund, has also been appointed an OBE in the New Year's Honours List for services to brain tumour charities.
Great Western Railway managing director Mark Hopwood is also recognised in the New Year Honours List with a CBE.
